For the most part though, I’m kind of at a loss for what to truly say about this album. It’s the sort of record that doesn’t have anything inherently wrong with it, even if it’s not truly connecting with me for some reason.

For someone who’s heard Jay Joyce do some pretty weird stuff with his production techniques (like this group’s last album), this is probably one of his most tame projects yet.

Now, I don’t mean tame as in lifeless, because that’s not being fair to this album, however, I would say this is tame in the sense of its mood. It’s relaxed, and quiet, probably better suited for Fall than it is in the dead end of Winter. If I had to compare, I’d say it’s got the same weathered feel to it that Brent Cobb’s debut album, Shine On Rainy Day did.

This is a thinkpiece that stemmed from my very recent review of Aaron Watson’s Vaquero. In that review I stated that many people will be quick to criticize the lyrical content for being very basic and rarely ever transcending beyond either love songs or nostalgic songs. I also asked a question in response to that – are the lyrics really even the most essential part of an Aaron Watson record? Especially one where he more than compensated for it by expanding his sound?

It’s a hard question to answer clearly, but it also got me thinking, what are the elements that comprise an artist, song, or album? More importantly, are there are elements that are more an important for an artist to hammer down on as opposed to others? Also, does one need a mastery of every single element to truly be a great artist? I thought about these questions, and today I’m going to try and give you all MY viewpoint. Again, MY viewpoint, not yours, MINE.

Dungeonmaster84 of the brand new country music blog, “Rescuing Country Music” is tired of being ignored by other country music bloggers.

“I don’t get it, I’ve commented on all of their blogs telling them how great they are and how much I agree with everything they say, and still, nothing! I’ve done everything I think I needed to. I mean, I’ve written countless posts about how amaze-balls Sturgill Simpson and Jason Isbell are, and more often than not I’m calling mainstream country artists butt -heads. Seriously, WHAT GIVES?!? I know, it was probably that one time I went against the grain and gave my actual, honest opinion on something. Damn it, that was it wasn’t it?”

If Vaquero proves anything, it proves that Aaron can do it all at this point – fun songs, love songs, darker songs, serious songs…you name it. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been a fan of the guy for awhile, and he’s always been pretty dang solid (and a nice guy to boot). But this album? Well folks, the blog is but a young one, and yet I’m already going to use a term I normally hate using when describing an artist – evolution.

Normally it’s just a term that the “business” likes to cram down your throat to cover up why country radio doesn’t sound country these days, but it’s easy to forget that it really is something that naturally happens for artists over the duration of their careers.

I remember when Larry Hooper recorded this track last year for his album, No Turning Back. It was definitely the highlight of the album, and I’m glad to see the song revived again for Jason Eady’s upcoming self-titled release.

Jason’s version is different from that version, and while I won’t compare the two, I will say that both are worth your time.

Anyway, on to Jason’s version. Jason Eady has stated that he wanted his upcoming self-titled album to be more subdued than Daylight and Dark, and that’s what we’ve gotten so far with tracks such as this and “Why I Left Atlanta”.